Sen. Paul LeVota, of Independence, and House member Genise Montecillo, of St. Louis, said in a statement Tuesday the most recent example arose in recently disclosed emails from the education department dealing with a ballot measure to end teacher tenure and require that student performance guide employment decisions.

A department staff member originally proposed reporting to the state auditor's office that the initiative had potential for significant unknown costs to local school districts. Nicastro changed that to say the cost was unknown.